January 6, 2022

COLUMBUS – Columbus Crew today announced that it has acquired winger Yaw Yeboah [pronounced: YAO yeh-BO-wah] from Wisla Krakow of the Polish First Division utilizing Targeted Allocation Money (TAM). The 24-year-old will officially be added to the Black & Gold roster pending receipt of his International Transfer Certificate and P-1 Visa and will occupy an international roster slot on the Crew’s roster. His contract with the Club will run through the 2024 season with an option for 2025.

“We are thrilled to welcome Yaw to Columbus,” said Columbus Crew President & General Manager Tim Bezbatchenko. “Yaw is a young winger whose dynamic style of play has made him one of the most exciting up-and-coming players in the Ekstraklasa during his time in Poland. In addition to playing in some of the top leagues in Europe, Yaw also brings valuable international experience with the Ghanaian National Team. We believe his addition to our roster will strengthen our attack and help us increase production out wide.”

Yeboah joined Wisla Krakow in August of 2020 and appeared in 50 matches across all competitions with the club, scoring 10 goals and providing five assists over the past two seasons. In August of 2021, he was named the Ekstraklasa Player of the Month while his game-winning goal against Gornik Leczna (August 21) was awarded Goal of the Month.

A graduate of Ghana’s famed Right to Dream Academy, Yeboah signed with Manchester City in 2014 at the age of 17. While on loan from 2014-18, Yeboah competed for LOSC Lille of France’s Ligue 1, FC Twente of the Dutch Eredivisie and Real Oviedo of the Spanish Segunda Division.

The winger signed with CD Numancia of Spain’s Second Division in July of 2018, scoring two goals in 34 matches before going on loan to RC Celta de Vigo of Spain’s La Liga. Yeboah scored five goals in 20 matches for Celta de Vigo B before making the move to Poland.

In all, the 24-year-old has scored 19 goals in 170 appearances as a professional across all competitions.

At the international level, the Accra, Ghana native has earned four caps with the Ghanaian Men’s National Team since making his debut in an international friendly against Namibia in 2019 (June 9). The winger has also represented Ghana at the Under-23 and U-20 levels, featuring at the 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup as well as helping the Black Stars to a third-place finish at the 2015 African U-20 Championship where he was named the Man of the Tournament.

Crew players are set to report for entrance physicals and testing on January 16 before departing for a training camp in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, from January 18-28. With the seasonal bubble currently encompassing the field at Historic Crew Stadium, the Crew will train in-market from February 1-6 at the OhioHealth Performance Center prior to traveling to Charleston, South Carolina, for the second trip of the preseason from February 7-19.

The Black & Gold are set to open the 2022 MLS season by hosting Vancouver Whitecaps FC at Lower.com Field on Saturday, February 26 at 3:30 p.m. ET. The 2022 season will be the Black & Gold’s 27th in MLS and the first full season at Lower.com Field, located in Astor Park. Fans looking to experience Crew matches have a number of options as Season Ticket Members for 2022, which include benefits such as private, member-only events; a 10 percent discount at the Crew Shop; monthly, interest-free payment plans; the ability to purchase discounted parking; pre-sale access to all events at Lower.com Field, Historic Crew Stadium and FirstEnergy Stadium; and a dedicated account manager and service representative. Supporters interested in securing Season Ticket Memberships or placing deposits for the 2022 MLS season can call 614-447-2739, visit columbuscrew.com/tickets or email seasontickets@columbuscrew.com to get connected with a Ticket Sales Representative.

Fans can also purchase Nine-Match Ticket Plans by placing a deposit for as little as $100, providing fans limited game selection flexibility and access to pre-sales. Fans wanting to attend matches with single-match tickets can sign up for single match ticket priority which will give access to purchase before the general public.

The Crew’s current roster headed into 2022, listed alphabetically by position, is below:

Goalkeepers (1): Eloy Room

Defenders (3): Jonathan Mensah, Steven Moreira, Josh Williams

Midfielders (14): Artur, Sebastian Berhalter, Luis Diaz, Derrick Etienne, Jr., Marlon Hairston, Perry Kitchen, Alex Matan, Kevin Molino, Aidan Morris, Darlington Nagbe, Isaiah Parente, Pedro Santos, Yaw Yeboah, Lucas Zelarayan

Forwards (2): Miguel Berry, Gyasi Zardes

TRANSACTION: Columbus Crew acquires winger Yaw Yeboah from Polish Ekstraklasa side Wisla Krakow utilizing Targeted Allocation Money on January 6, 2022. His contract with the Club will run through the 2024 season with an option for 2025.

Name: Yaw Yeboah [YAO yeh-BO-wah]

Position: Midfielder

Height: 5’9”

Weight: 144

Born: March 28, 1997 in Accra, Ghana

Hometown: Accra, Ghana

Citizenship: Ghana

Acquired: Acquired by Columbus Crew on January 6, 2022.

Previous Experience: Wisla Krakow (2020-2021), RC Celta de Vigo (2019-2020), CD Numancia (2018-2020), Real Oviedo (2017-2018), FC Twente (2016-2017), LOSC Lille (2015-2016), Manchester City FC (2014-2018)

COURTESY COLUMBUS CREW COMMUNICATIONS